peacemongeroo

Sarah Chois rule the world

2012-01-23T23:54:00.000-08:00

In my high school class, I remember there were 6 Sarahs. Sarah on student govt, hot Sarah, athletic Sarah, Sarah something, some other Sarah I didn't know very well, and... me. But back then, I was the only known "Sarah Choi".

In '04, I joined Facebook when it was still in it's infancy. I searched for "Sarah Choi", and with only a handful of colleges in the network, low and behold, there were 5 of us sprawled across America. I friended them all. One messaged back, "Hey! Have we met??" Hmm. Not the brightest of us.

Later that year, as my friend was signing me in at his dorm lobby, he asks, "Hey, did you sign in already?" Scrawled on the last box: "Sarah Choi". My friend yells, "SARAH CHOI!!" and a girl at the elevator whips around. She had graduated just before I started and was visiting a friend.

When Facebook reared its ugly head to the global world, I started getting requests from people I had never met. At first, I would respond back. By now I have stopped responding to all Facebook, LinkedIn, and yes, even Google+ requests for some other "Sarah Choi". I tried, I really did. But there are too many to keep up.

My senior year, we were doing freshman outreach during Welcome Week. Sitting at the table on Sproul, my friend says, "Yo, stop signing yourself in to make our list look longer." But I had not. Later that week, as I traipsed the hallways of Unit 3, I look at a door and written on that piece of construction paper... can you guess? "Sarah Choi". She wasn't home that day, nor did she end up joining our fellowship. Nor did she reply to my welcome to Cal email. Bringing us down, Sarah. Was it because your new friends kept finding me instead of you on Facebook?

When I joined Google, a "Sarah Choi - Finance" started receiving many of my emails. There was even one time she received my postal package (shipped to Mountain View, then to Seoul, then back to Mountain View, then finally to NYC). "Sarah Choi - Finance" is no longer at Google, but now there is a "Sara Choi - YouTube".

A few days ago, I posted some stuff to sell craigslist. Here's one of the replies:

To all you Sarah Chois out there, I hope you share my love for our name as much as you share my actual name.

Share to Care (SF)

2011-12-08T19:57:00.001-08:00

We're live! Check out the stories behind Share to Care on our blog, and vote for us on GOOD!

Beware of flash sales

2011-11-28T10:30:00.001-08:00

What's a Motto with you?

2011-11-07T22:35:00.000-08:00

After a recent bout of SaranWrap sayings, I realized have a few mottos that I seem to tout often myself. Here are the mantras of my life and what the heck I'm trying to say:

Everything in moderation.
Too much of anything is bad for you. Candy, work, play, love... even water. (Seriously, you can die from drinking too much water.) So I try not to live too much in the extremes. My life is pretty mellow. I let my friends fill that void with their drama ;).

Don't complain unless you're going to do something about it.
Clarification: complaining isn't the same as venting. By all means, vent away -- everyone needs to do that. But at some point, you're not angry anymore, you're just complaining. And that's when you have to do something about it. Easier said than done, I know. But complaining about your problem isn't going to help. It's also hard for me to watch someone who is unhappy stay unhappy because they won't do anything to change their circumstances. I have a bias toward action, so if I feel like something is awry, I want to fix it.

Open mind, open heart, empty stomach... closed legs.

This applies to dating, specifically online dating. As my friends started dipping their toes in the online dating scene, I started encouraging them to take chances with strangers. You can't really judge someone based on their thumbnail picture and beefed up profile. So go on the date, and:

Keep an open mind that your perfect man/woman may not be what you think.
Have an open heart and break down any walls that are preventing you from being honest and earnest.
Make sure you have an empty stomach because if you are going on a date, you're probably going to eat dinner. Food bonds people.
The last part is due to Clayton butchering my phrase. Keep those legs closed until date #100!

90% of drama is due to misunderstandings
No wonder our group name is SaranWrap. We've stuck together though some serious issues, or at least many spats between individuals. I've done scientific research with a double blind experiment and some statistical modeling to prove that 90% of these issues are due to simple misunderstandings. He said, she said, you said, I said... Things just get lost in translation. Most people, especially your friends, have good intentions. So next time you feel angry toward or hurt by a friend, take the time to calm down and clarify what they meant to say. It saves a lot of ill will, awkwardness, and anxiety.

Live life
You have two options: 1) swing on the rope and jump into the cold lake, or 2) just watch other people do it. Pick option 1. You'll have way more fun, promise.
Hydrate before you dominate.
The first sign of dehydration is chapped lips. Drink lots of water. But don't over-hydrate, see motto #1.

Songs of the Month, er, Moment

2011-11-02T23:01:00.000-07:00

By popular demand of my one blog reader, DJ Melon, here's a full list of all "Songs of the Month" I've had on this blog. There are only 7. Clearly, I did not do this every month. I've also brought it back (lookit the sidebar -->) as "Songs of the Moment", since that's more accurate.

Hey Mama by Mat Kearney
Nothing by The Script
Just Say Yes by Snow Patrol
You and I by Ingrid Michaelson
Under Control by Parachute
Mad by Ne-Yo
New Soul by Yael Naim

BFF

2011-10-14T18:27:00.000-07:00

This is why you're my best friend.
Thanks melon.

Oops

2011-10-10T22:12:00.000-07:00

I just published a bunch of old drafts, but didn't realize Blogger uses the publish time stamp vs. the original draft time stamp. My bad!

Home & Away

2011-10-10T21:38:00.000-07:00

At the beginning of this year, each member of my team had to state one thing they were going to do for work-life balance. Mine was to go on vacation -- a lot! With over 15 days of vacation (that's 15 work days) and having only taken one real vacation in the last 2.5 years, it was time to play hard. I set aside a nice chunk of change and started taking advantage of any days Helen Melon was free. Unfortunately that only meant weekends. But that's just as good; sometimes (actually, most of the time), vacations are 2x the work with to prep before and follow-up after.

So where have I been going? Nowhere too far actually, but still tons of fun. Here's a recap:

Tahoe
Maui and Oahu
Tahoe
Vegas
Vegas (again)
Seattle
Florida, Bahamas, US Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico, Grand Turk, back to Florida (it was a cruise ya?)
Pismo
Chicago
NYC!
Yosemite
LA
Vegas (yes, again)

After 5 consecutive weekends of living life, it feels so good to be home. Yet somehow I still manage to have over 16 days of vacation now... how did that happen? I'm pretty much out of pocket til March, but anyone down for a trip then? I'll go anywhere!

Eating Dinner

2011-09-25T21:40:00.000-07:00

I eat dinner at work 3-4 times per week. It's a wonderful luxury, no doubt. But this week I have not eaten dinner at work once, and let me tell ya, that is an even more wonderful luxury. That means I have been leaving the building before 6:30pm. (Though sometimes it means I'm leaving the building after 8pm and didn't grab dinner, but that's not what I'm talking about here!). Hooray for work-life balance! Here's what I had and/or cooked (yes, I cooked!):

Mon: Shrimp cooked in leftover Craw Station and bread (there were some consequences with this one...)

Tue: Bun Mee rice bowl with Jo

Wed: Grilled shrimp marinated in lime and market spices, fresh english peas with scallions, and toasted bread

Thu: Sweet mustard brussel sprouts, cheesy garlic bread (one sourdough baguette goes a long way), and some parmesan

Fri: mama Choi's cookin'

Joey went rogue

2011-08-23T18:34:00.000-07:00

Email from mom:
Hi!, Sarah
How are you?

That's a what happen to "Joey"
Yesterday morning, Sam took Joey out before he go to work (about 6:45 a.m.).
Sam release Joey, and Joey disappear from Sam, Sam couldn't find him, Sam lost Joey!!

Whole family (Dad, I, Sam) waiting for Joey to come back home.
Finally, Sam got a phone call from someone 9p.m., he saw Joey at park, contact "Shelter"
Joey stay at "Shelter" that time.
Sam look at web site, find Joey's picture there, he show to me Joey's picture.

I don't know about "Joey"!!!!

Have a nice this afternoon.

Love,
Mom

Picture from SFACC lost & found site:

Recipe for a GREAT day

2011-05-27T00:05:00.000-07:00

Ingredients:

10am wake up time after a fun night in a mansion
10-minute quick jog on a treadmill... IN MY ROOM
1 turkey meatloaf sandwich and 1 ice coffee at Dean & Delucca
1 stunning view of a mountain vineyard
8 teammates doing "team building activities" via wine tour, cheese... and more wine
4 Bouchon hazelnut macarons, 4 chocolate almond croissants and 1 coffee cake
3 great friends and 1 ticket to The Script and Andrew Allen at the Warfield
1 corned beef sandwich at Tommy's Joint
0 days taken off of work ;)

Directions:

Consume each ingredient in order, and never take any of them for granted

Parking in SF

2011-05-23T22:00:00.000-07:00

This guy wrote an entire book on parking in SF called Finding the Sweet Spot (check out his handy flow chart). I believe it. Parking in SF is a disaster. Here are some of my frustrating moments parking in this wonderful city of mine, I'm sure you can relate.

I have made everyone in my car (front and back seats) stop their conversation to keep their eyes peeled.
I have spent 45 minutes looking for parking in North Beach, only to finish eating dinner in 40 minutes.
I have heard the same Rihanna song play 5 times before finding a spot.
I have passed an open spot on the left side, turned into a driveway to turn around, only to have another car right behind me do the exact same thing and beat me to the spot.
I have parked, turned off the car, walked to the curb only to find that yes, it is too small, but oh well. Thought about it for 10 steps, turned back around, got back in, turned the engine on, and continued to look.
I have successfully fit into a parallel parking spot with 4 inches on either side, without tapping either (to my knowledge).
I have tapped the car in front of me. And behind.
I have rolled down the window yelling, "EX-CUSE ME ARE YOU GUYS LEAV-ING?!"
I have often parked on a hill with a 20+% grade
I have backed up for 1/2 a long block and turned a corner (still in reverse) to get a spot. Downtown.
I have parallel parked in one try. Didn't even need to pull forward.
I have had to park in 5 tries.
I have found the perfect spot, only to find that the owner has painted the edges of the space red so that only a mini Cooper or smart car could fit.
I have thought about parking illegally and just risking it.
I have thought about trading my car for a moped.

When my roommate had a car, sometimes she would call me out of pure frustration. Not that there was anything I could do, she just needed someone to comfort her and tell her that it would all be ok. The car has since been brought back down to LA, the land of traffic... that's a whole 'nother car-related anger.

go america!

2011-05-19T21:27:00.000-07:00

It lives on!

2011-03-07T08:43:00.000-08:00

I just found out today that the Microfinance decal I started senior year is still going strong. I thought it had died after 2-3 semesters, but it lives, it lives on!! In fact, it's been passed down from instructor to student every semester since that first semester in Spring '08. Oh bless you Cal students, you make my heart sing!

GO BEARS!

An email from my Dad for my birthday

2011-03-02T18:44:00.000-08:00

Dear Daughter,

I'm so thankful to have
a daughter like you and
a wife like your mom.
There is no others
who could fill your shoes.
You're such a good example
of what a daughter should be.
We always get along so well
even when we disagree.
You're so patient
and understanding.
You don't ask for anything.
You're never demanding.

You're so quick to give
and such a joy to be around.
You're such a good person.
You deserve a special 24th birthday crown.
You have a good heart.
You're honest and true.
You brighten up my life
with memories and dreams

I love you so much.

Daddy

Boring

2011-02-22T22:53:00.000-08:00

While couch shopping:
H: "How about this one?"
S: "It's too boring."
H: "It's perfect, you're a boring person."

While re-telling the story later:
H: "Well, I mean, your taste is boring. Like your clothes."

This merits a Japanese emoticon: T_T

Furikake goes with everything

2011-01-24T21:42:00.000-08:00

On my recent trip to Hawaii, I learned many important lessons: Bring motion sickness pills on a boat ride if it's a windy day. Amazing things happen in an instant, so have a camera ready at all times. Sometimes you just shouldn't go off the beaten road. You aren't a good shotgun just because you stay awake. Japanese tourists have way more fun taking pictures. And furikake goes with everything, especially french fries.

SF to NY to LA to SF

2010-12-04T21:05:00.000-08:00

My first "real" vacation since I started working 2.3 years ago was a trip to NY and LA last week.

friend: "you're taking a long vacay to visit places you've frequently been to?"

me: "si"

Vacations don't necessarily need to be some big planned trip to an exciting and/or exotic destination. It doesn't always involve getting lost and going to famous places. Sometimes you don't need a buddy or need to plan it over a week in advance or have it cost you an arm and a leg. Sometimes you don't need to take one single picture. Not a single one.

When you return to cities you've been to a hundred times, you can skip all that (plus have free housing). Central Park in the fall-- it's beautiful, but I've got my pictures of it last year. The world famous Rockefeller tree lighting-- what a zoo, no thank you! Beverly Hills, Hollywood-- eh, been there done that. What I loved more was shopping in SoHo at 10am on a Monday morning, discovering a Whole Foods the size of Costco, browsing 1200 flavors of soda pop, and walking back and forth across a street of food trucks just to see the menus. It was a true luxury not having a plan and having so many aimless moments in the week when I was looking to just kill time. Such a change from the 12+ hour days at work + 2+ hour commute.

More important than relaxing, this trip was chance to say, "Hey remember me?" to (almost all) the people that are important in my life that I hadn't seen in 6 months to a year. The phrases I expected: "It's so good to see you", "Thank you for letting me crash", "Don't you dare pay for this meal". Some phrases were a bit more unexpected: "Congratulations!", "OMG you're WHAT?!" (engaged, going to grad school, pregnant...).

Friends of NY and LA, THANK YOU again for eating, catching up, listening, talking, recommending, advising, housing, entertaining, wandering, and walking (and driving) with me.

Who I saw and what I ate, because you know traveling is all about the food:

Sat: lunch with V at the Meatball Shop, coffee at Joes, shopping, dessert at Christine's with her hilarious friends, drinks at Raine's Law

Sun: brunch with V and Grace at Keste, coffee at Joes (again), shopping (again), Redeemer Church, dinner with V at Malatesa

Mon: Coffee and pastries at Balthazar Bakery, Shopping (for real this time), lunch with Jen at Totto Ramen (it's no Ippudo c'mon now), dinner with Jonna at Momofuku Noodle Bar and deserts at Milk Bar

Tue: Lunch with Parilee at the Green Table, feeding my banana cocaine addiction with Richard at Magnolias, coffee/wine/cheese at Eataly, church small group, dinner with Gabby at Blue Smoke

Wed: Coffee at Joes (yes again because it's the best in the universe), lunch with old team at the office, cupcake at Billys, catchup with Wilken, manipedi, dinner with Donna/Aneesh/V at Shake Shake in Midtown

Thu: Breakfast with HyunJin at Clinton St. Bakery, flight, LA traffic, dinner with Eunice at Din something in Chinese (soup dumpling place)

Fri: Coffee at the Starbucks in LA Live (don't know what the hype was about...it's just a Starbucks), lunch with Tim at Daikokasomething, Scoop, random driving, more LA traffic, dinner with Dima at Manchego

Sat: Breakfast at Alli's, wedding dress shopping and lunch with Mel/Julie/Alli at the Hat, LA traffic, Santa Monica mall, a little more LA traffic, flight

Next time:

Tater tots and bacon wrapped hot dog in E Village
Somewhere schmancy, Michelin-y
IPPUDO
Eataly (for the pasta)
Mozza

LET'S GO GI-ANTS!

2010-11-15T22:01:00.000-08:00

I'm may not the biggest Giants fan, but I sure do love them. Don't really care about any other team. The 2002 series makes me sad every time I think about it, and have been going to at least a few games every season since I was a kid. Wouldn't deny being a bandwagoner, but I've have been a lifelong fan.

So how did I spend the 2010 champion year?

This year I only got to go to one pre-season game. I watched the entire post-season on gameday on my computer (which is not actually streaming, just a delayed play-by-play). One of the few games I watched on TV, the cable box went out as Uribe hit a clutch homer. Didn't go to a single bar. Watched only one game with my buddies, and they lost that one. I did get to watch Game 4 with roommies, but was doing work at the same time. Got back to the city after 10pm every weeknight. Didn't have a single hat or shirt to wear proudly. Not to mention how I spent the final game. Missed the games, after-parties, jumping in the streets, the parade, and all the championship hugs and high fives.

But it doesn't matter because the Giants won the World Series. Don't need to be a part of it to feel the city buzzing. It's in the air :)

GO GIANTS!

camping

2010-10-11T22:43:00.001-07:00

here are a list of some awesome things:

my dad telling me we're going to leave at 6:30am, but letting me sleep in until 7:30 (that never happens)
my mom giving me the $16 she found in my pants when doing my laundry
using that money to buy ice cream bars for everyone
figuring out how to assemble a 9x17 ft tent
sleeping in a 9x17 tent
on battery-powered aero beds that my dad bought because he thinks he's too old to be sleeping on rocks and sticks
camping in yosemite on a warm, orange-tinted october day, even though my toes fell off when it went below 30 degrees at night
wearing the same clothes for 40 hours
not wearing makeup
getting a site close to the bathrooms, even though my mom didn't see where I was pointing and instead, walked .25 miles up the hill to the next bathroom
throwing rocks at random things while gathering firewood
building a campfire without lighter fluid
watching my dad try to add a log that is literally bigger than me in our fire pit
eating spicy korean ramen for lunch, dinner, and breakfast
eating 4 s'mores (yes 4)
waking up, walking out of the tent, and seeing a BEAR in the next campsite
climbing rocks to a waterfall, even though I slipped and got my shoe wet
my mom having like 12,000 korean wetnaps
my bro not paying attention while driving down a steep and windy road because we finally got reception to KNBR 680 and were listening to the Giants game
the Giants going from a 1-2 score at the top of the 9th with one man on, 2 outs and a 2-2 count to scoring 2 more and wining the game
checking the Cal game score (35-7)
my bro saying he'll drive until we need to fill up again, which never happened. sucka!

cheers choi family!

puzzles are frustrating

2010-09-23T00:04:00.000-07:00

i hate planning vacations. i used to like it... but now i hate it. it's like putting together a 1000 puzzle piece together that only has 2 colors. it's really rewarding if you finish it, but otherwise it's easier to just give up.

"They're not even TRYING!"

2010-08-30T20:25:00.000-07:00

When you go to Disneyland for the first time with different people you learn a lot. This weekend I learned that there are two types of people in this world:

The ones that go to Disneyland from park open (8am) to park close (midnight), creating a FastPass strategy to ride every ride at least once, literally running to CA Adventure to make the Aladdin show, efficiently planning bathroom breaks and when to buy the turkey legs, limping because your back hurts and you have shin splints but still ride on one more ride before crawling back to the car where everyone falls asleep and the driver has to belt BBMak out of tune to stay awake but he's not mad because it was SO WORTH IT.
And then there are the ones that eat lunch in Downtown Disney, show up at the park at 12:30pm, have a relaxing quota of 4 or 5 rides, make other people to buy them the pineapple floats, and don't even care about World of Color because they want to leave at 8:30pm.

I'm not hating, I'm just saying there are two types...

In all seriousness, the trip was mega fun even with nubs from category B. Not without it's points of stress. At one point Jon/Liz need to pee and Jer/Steve were falling behind, but Clay/Marg/Helen are literally running with Marg yelling, "They're not even TRYING!"

I ended up pausing, then yelling, "Just leave them we have 2 minutes before the show starts GOGOGO!" The last thing I saw was Steve's face looking at us like we were lunatics. But the Aladdin show was crazy awesome.

I was sorry to leave you guys :( Really was sorry...

That's my boss('s boss)!

2010-07-23T16:06:00.000-07:00

http://www.hreonline.com/HRE/story.jsp?storyId=461233863

"It changed my life."

2010-05-06T21:38:00.001-07:00

From time to time, I say this phrase. But you should know, there are certain criteria for something to truly merit this statment:

Can't be obvious like moving into a new apartment, getting a smart phone, or believing in Jesus.
Must be either uncommon OR not revered by the common. Sex would never apply. Neither would homemade chocolate chip cookies, because who doesn't like homemade chocolate chip cookies? Only aliens and crazy people.
Must change the way you think, live, eat, breathe, move, feel, or do. Not necessarily all of the above, at least one of them.
Every time someone mentions it you think, "Oh ya, that totally changed my life."

Now, the top 10 things that have changed my life (so far):

Gourmet mac & cheese -- I have always loved mac & cheese. I'd rather never eat any dessert ever again than give up mac & cheese. I was, and still am, a big fan of Kraft, both the stove-top box and microwave packet varieties. But having "grown-up" mac & cheese makes me fall onto the floor. We're talking smoked gouda and bacon, buffalo chicken mac & cheese, 4-cheese (goat, colby, cheddar, and parmesan) with herbed bread crumbs...
How I Met Your Mother -- one of the few shows that makes me laugh so out loud I need to clap my hand over my mouth because otherwise I sound like a crazy person because I'm by myself.
Skinny belt around the waist over a long cardigan -- ~2x per week
Expensive haircuts -- Nothing crazy, like $50-70. I used to loathe my hair, but now realize that it was just because I refused to spend more than $10 on a haircut. I'm not a boy.
Inductive Bible study -- I've been reading the Bible my entire life, but it wasn't until I did this form of intensive, scholarly, be-confused-then-figure-it-out type of study that I finally understood the wisdom behind the words. Mark Study made me understand why we use words like "glory" and "lamb" when looking the life of Jesus.
Eyebrow pencils -- If you look at pictures from college and before, I have no eyebrows.
Wicked the musical -- Changed my life because I still break out in song or listen to the entire soundtrack at least once per month.
Business as Missions track at Urbana '06 -- Set my foundation and belief that the the purpose of business and the economy is for social change, not profit.
Not looking at the clock before I go to bed -- Finally stopped calculating how many hours of sleep I would get and then having trouble falling asleep because I would be thinking, "I'm only gonna get X hours of sleep." I got this trick from Dani. I've been waking up more well-rested ever since.
Interval training on a treadmill -- I hate running. Hate it. It's uncomfortable and boring and tiring. But interval training gives it some pizazz. I can now run 3-4 times a week without wanting to hurl my body off the treadmill.

Mondays

2010-04-19T23:07:00.000-07:00

Oh my goodness, what a long day! But no, not because of work.

After work, hit the gym and stayed on the treadmill an extra 7 minutes (yes it makes a difference!). Then instead of running to catch the shuttle, I stayed a little longer and sat to eat dinner. One hour commute, got home, showered, cleaned up a bit, then finally settled down with my computer to watch some useless TV and see the latest in my inbox. But oh no, not such a calm night. You know what happens when the entire bottom part of my Gmail screen fills with chat windows and I can't read the bottom of the email threads? I actually turn off my TV because I need to concentrate (and if you know me, you know my TV is always on).

VIDEOCHAT SEATTLE BABIES TAHOE SWINGDANCING APRIL MAY JUNE JULY VEGAS PISMO SAN DIEGO CALENDAR BIRTHDAYS CALENDAR FINDMEABOYFRIEND MINNACOMEHERE CALENDAR LUNCH CALENDAR TAHOE WOOT!

No wonder I don't have a hobby. But if the rest of my days and nights are filled corralling friends and debating trip options while making lunch plans, chatting with friends, and typing "lol" a lot more than I have recently*...well then, my life is full and I'm a lucky gal :)

*To be explained another, non-Monday day

How much would you pay for this meal?

2010-04-17T01:04:00.000-07:00

Giant steak, glazed baby bok choy, and a healthy portion of mac and cheese. How much would you pay for this meal? Cuz I paid less than $5, and it took less than 30 minutes to make. From Whole Foods no less.

Take that Rachael Ray!

Girl Advice

2010-03-31T16:31:00.000-07:00

Ladies, take notes. A hilarious and wise post from Taylor E.

Excerpts from an article by Tim Keller

2010-03-26T13:37:00.000-07:00

Up until now, my faith has been driven by "what makes sense and is right for me". I've often encouraged others to figure out "what God means and how He speaks to you". While I still believe God is immensely personal and does speak to each person in their own way, this article exposes the fine line between that, and convincing ourselves of what we want to be true. Individuality is subject to, well, selfishness and naivety. Why do we trust ourselves so much more than God? That's so silly. Read on...

(edited down with bold highlights by me)
AUTHORITY
BY TIM KELLER

... We are our own moral authority... [People] are always ready to change direction and abandon commitments and loyalties without qualms and to pursue, on a personal cost-benefit basis, the best opportunity available to them...

Sociologist Christian Smith has written a book called Souls in Transition which profiles the beliefs of young adults under the age of 25. He finds that most of them believe it is the choice of their beliefs that make them true, not their truth that leads to our choice of them. He notes how even young adults who go to conservative churches and identify as Christians often refuse to believe Christian prohibitions against premarital sex and other Biblical norms that conflict with their feelings and intuitions.

Smith relates how he often interviewed people and asked them if their moral convictions (some of which were very strong) were mainly subjective feelings or really true to reality. He found that most had difficulty even understanding what he was asking...

Many years ago as a young Christian my attention was arrested by an article on ‘Authority’ by John Stott. Stott asked, “Why should people believe that the Bible is God’s Word written, inspired by his Spirit and authoritative over their lives?” (The Authority of the Bible, IVP, 1974,p.6) This was a big question for me. I had decided that I believed in Jesus Christ, but I struggled with the idea that I had to believe everything in the Bible. Stott answered that we do not believe it simply because we want to be dogmatic and certain about our own beliefs, nor because the church has consistently taught this (though it has), nor because we just ‘feel’ the Bible is true as we read it. “No. The overriding reason for accepting the divine inspiration and authority of Scripture is plain loyalty to Jesus…Our understanding of everything is conditioned by what Jesus taught. And that includes his teaching about the Bible. We have no liberty to exclude anything from Jesus’ teaching and say, ‘I believe what he taught about this but not what he taught about that.’ What possible right do we have to be selective?” (p.7)

What did Jesus believe about the Bible? He said that not a ‘jot or tittle’ (i.e. not the smallest letter or even a part of a letter) would pass away from God’s Word until all was fulfilled (Matthew 5:17-18 cf.John 10:35.) ... So, to Jesus, what Scripture says, God says. And Jesus did not simply believe the Bible, but he guided and regulated every step and detail of his life by it (cf. John 19:28.)

Stott’s question—‘what possible right do we have to be selective?’—is like a hammer blow to our contemporary way of life. We feel strongly that we have the right, even the obligation to select what parts of Jesus teaching we can accept and what parts we cannot. But that makes no sense. Why should you trust in him as Savior if you are wiser and smarter then he is? Either he is who he said he is, and his views judge our views, or he was lying or deluded about being the Son of God. So Jesus’ authority and the absolute authority of the Bible stand or fall together. If we believe he was who he said he was, then we must accept the entire Bible as God’s word.

New Song-of-the-Month

2010-03-23T23:31:00.000-07:00

"Just Say Yes" by Snow Patrol. Click image to right to listen.

HIMYM

2010-03-23T23:10:00.001-07:00

If you don't know what HIMYM stands for, this chat with Sharon won't make sense to you. Also, I feel sorry for you.

11:04 PM Sharon: im growing wiser each year u know?

11:05 PM me: each day

Sharon: hollerrrrr

me: in 55 more minutes...wait for it...

Sharon: lol

11:06 PM omg what do they say??

i forgot!

me: OMG

Sharon: in how i met ur mother!

me: you forgot THAT??

SHARONNN

Sharon: omg!!

i forgot itttt

me: that is crucial

Sharon: OMG

hint!

me: that's like not knowing "that's whay she said"

don't look it up

don't cheat

Sharon: im not

im thinkin

omg

u are making me nervous

me: ok lactose intolerant

that is your hint

11:07 PM Sharon: huh

me: think it out

lactose intolerant

Sharon: something ...ary

me: what does lactose intolerant mean?

Sharon: u cant drink milk

11:08 PM u dont digest cuz u lack the enzymes lactate

me: ok smarty pants. milk is what kind of product?

Sharon: LEGENDARY!!!!!!!

Another day, another year

2010-03-18T19:46:00.000-07:00

My mom's text messages from my birthday this year:

"HAPPY HAPPY YOUR 23th BIRTHDAY!!
I will you tomorrow,
You have a great day.
I love you!"

2 hours later...

"I am missing something. I will SEE you tomorrow."

10 minutes after that...

"Also, 23rd birthday, not 23th.
Sorry."

----------------------------------------------

When I was 21, I posted a list of the 9 things I must do before I'm 25. 2 years left, so it's time to start assigning. Here's my progress:

Visit Thailand (2010)
Learn Spanish (2010-2011)
Do something, anything! in microfinance or non-profit (2011)
Fully and regularly donate 10% of my net income (2010 and onward!)
Take the GMAT (2011)
Be a size 4 again (pbbbtttt I'm over this one. But let's try it anyway. 2010...December)
Commit to a church that I love (2010. City Church is looking promising!)
~~Live in a different city~~ (NYC!!)
Go to the gyno. Not because I want to but because I should. (Ugh. 2011. December)

Work Work Work

2010-02-20T08:41:00.000-08:00

At work, we're piloting a survey where you provide confidential feedback to your manager. I wrote up this glowing free response to my old manager in NY because she is fantastic. She's definitely a model for me if I ever become a manager in my career. So here are the notes of what a great manager is IMHO:

Perf reviews: During our 1:1, she didn't just talk to me about what she thought as a manager, but took the time to also review what I and my peers wrote about my work.
Removing roadblocks: During our regular 1:1s, she would explicitly ask me if I was having any issues with my work and what she could do to help. She was also very available to provide real-time feedback and solutions.
Career development and personal well-being: More than anything, I appreciated that she was genuinely invested in my and the team's well-being. She would ask questions like "What are you doing that you like/dislike, so that we can have you do more/less of it?", "What else do you want to take on or explore?", "What are you thinking about longer term and how can we make that happen?" Throughout the year, several members on our team either took on more responsibilities, completely changed roles, and a couple even left the company. She was supportive on every end to see that they were doing what was right for them in their career.
Guidance: Though most of the work was not glamourous, she was keen on acknowledging accomplishments to make it seem less painful. I don't know how she knew when to give me space to be creative versus being in the weeds of the work; but she somehow balanced it appropriately. As the most junior member of the team, I also never felt that she was just shuffling off grunt work, which I have experienced on other teams and seen with other managers. There was a clear difference between doing the work that needed to be done and doing work that was interesting to me, and she openly appreciated both.
Constructive criticism: I'll be honest, I don't take criticism well. But she would deliver it in a way that would actually motivate me to fix it and improve. I think it's because she never made criticism seem like a heavy top-down reprimand, but rather an acknowledgment that I'm trying my best and this is what I can do to be even better. She is humble about her own challenges as well, which makes me respect her and value her feedback so much more.

On another note, it's been exactly one month since I joined my new team. This team is basically a point person for all People Ops communications, and so sometimes I feel like all I'm doing is going from meeting to meeting to meeting. Here's the proof:

Last 13 weeks:
Avg time in meetings: 14.69 hrs/wk (32.6%)
Avg productive time (4+ hours with no meetings): 19.38 (43.1%)

Last 4 weeks:
Avg time in meetings: 20.69 hrs/wk (46%)
Avg productive time (4+ hours with no meetings): 2 (4.4%)

Yeesh, no wonder I'm always finishing up on the shuttle!

Grow Up!

2010-02-20T08:39:00.000-08:00

Sharon recently whined to me that she doesn't want to grow up. Here were my tips:

take a trip to toys r us!
go down a slide!
run around in sprinklers!
roll down a hill!
swing on a swing!
spin in a circle until you fall over!

Oh to be a kid again...

Google Voice

2010-01-29T18:43:00.000-08:00

I recommend Google Voice for everyone. Not because it's an amazing tool that helps you keep track of all of your voicemails, or because it sends you text messages and emails if you aren't able to pick up the phone, or even because it has an endless archive like Gmail. But use Google Voice because it attempts to transcribe everything, which is pretty funny.

Usually, it's pretty accurate (actual words in red):
Helen Vo
1/17/10 9:08 PM
Hey Sarah. It's Colin [Helen], I was just wanted to let you know that we decided not to do. Roy is [Roy's] for Dine about town because they have a prefix menu all year round, so anything about doing lose. [Ruth] Chris is [Chris's] steakhouse.[?] Instead, 3 [we] changed, it's a Thursday night at 7:15 so let me know if you could make it or not the best. The reservation that I'm gonna make instead. So don't go to voicemail [Roy's]. Because we're not gonna be there. Okay. Feel free to call me tomorrow or tonight whenever. Okay bye.

Sometimes it can't figure out that someone just simply forgot to hang up the phone after the beep:
Ara Cho
1/10/10 7:52 AM
Hello hello hello hello hello.

Sometimes it's a bit inaccurate:
Helen Vo
1/29/10 6:32 PM
Hey at. Intellion. I'm just sitting on the gym, so if you can't Vegas a home that would be. Sorry it to you later to you later. Let me know. Hey. Yeah, call me back or Yeah. Okay bye.

But there are those times my mother leaves a message in Konglish (Korean+English):
Home
1/17/10 11:43 PM
On then I'll Monday 68. All my got people coming out and put something and goodbye.

Best when they are longer:
Mom
1/16/10 2:27 PM

Hey and I, and I don't know if I just wanted to give me a message and I'd love to read Diane's let me know. Idiot. So give me a call at the V. P of okay if not all night. Hey. Okay okay. Give me a call. Bye.

Dialogue

2010-01-28T16:13:00.001-08:00

SC: Most aesthetic things are unnecessary.
CN: I'm beautiful but I'm not unnecessary.

Fwd:

2009-11-20T12:03:00.000-08:00

Forwarded links from work, so fun!

Search On

Auto Complete Me

"You and I" by Ingrid Michaelson

2009-11-06T14:08:00.001-08:00

New Song of the Month! -->

Enough for Now

2009-09-20T19:20:00.000-07:00

One of my favorite bands is The Fray. I can (and have) listen to their albums on repeat for hours. Amazing melodies with incredibly beautifully written lyrics. They have this song called "Enough for Now" that I have listened to and "sang" along with at least 78 times since the album was released. By "sing" I mean today I realized every third word was not an actual word. Something like "Vlear to no for now" when it's actually "That's enough for now" (I'm serious, I would actually sing that). So I looked up the lyrics...and then the meaning of those lyrics. Break my heart Fray!

Step 1: Song
Step 2: Lyrics
Step 3: Interpretation
Step 4: Go hug your dad. And grandpa. And grandma. And mom.

Quote Burrito End Quote

2009-09-17T17:17:00.000-07:00

Went to grab some grub and of course I'm craving a burrito. No taquerias in this city, but found a Mexican place. Ordered a burrito that cost me $14.07 and ate it with a knife and fork. How dare they call this a "burrito"

Same with this place called Shake Shack, maybe you've heard of it. You wait an hour to pay $20 to eat a burger the size of my palm, fries, and a small shake.

Food here is fabulous, but burritos and burgers cannot compare...

Best of the Bay

2009-08-09T14:01:00.000-07:00

So with my recent Yelp craze, all which have been 3+ stars, I discovered you can make lists. This made me remember a draft of a blog post I had made a couple months ago, which is now published on the food blog. Will be transferred to Yelp if I should ever get around to rating all of those on the list. Not likely, but FYI, all will be 5 stars :)

I'm a Yelper!

2009-08-05T20:42:00.000-07:00

I just wrote 9 yelp reviews. Helen, please read the last one I wrote on Land Northeast Thai. The dessert will blow your mind.

But I only reviewed the places I really liked, so I need to find some bad places to review. Otherwise I lose credibility with the Yelp community...

It's really over

2009-07-20T15:38:00.000-07:00

====================================================================

CALMAIL ACCOUNT CANCELLATION NOTICE for sarahc24@berkeley.edu
====================================================================

UC Berkeley Human Resources or Office of the Registrar records
indicate you are no longer affiliated with UC Berkeley.

McDonald's

2009-06-26T15:56:00.000-07:00

Freaking crazy overpriced exorbitant robbery costly pricey expensive city!

S: "We don't have much time before our movie, let's go to McDonald's, it's right there."
V: "K"
...
S: "Where's the dollar menu?"
V: "What?"
S: "The dollar menu. I want a double cheeseburger."
V: "There is no dollar menu."
S: "What do you mean there's no dollar menu."
V: "What are you talking about? There's never been a dollar menu."
S: "WHAT? Oh, you mean in Manhattan?"
V: "No...I've never seen a dollar menu at a McDonald's. I spent like 8 bucks here last time. There's only a dollar menu at Wendy's"
S: "You're joking right?"
V: "..."

She wasn't joking. Apparently McDonald's in NY and Boston have. no. dollar. menus. I'm kinda devastated. Not that I eat McDonald's all the time, but it's where I go when I need a quick, cheap, don't care about my health meal! Gah! Poor V, never had a $1 McChicken or small fries or Double Cheeseburger or 2 Apple Pies or... Then I see a sign under the menu:

"Dear Customers,
Prices may be higher
in Manhattan
during the
current promotion."

Freaking expensive, NYC.
----
At the counter...
S: "Hi! 20 piece McChicken please." (V and I were sharing, I'm not that big a fatty!)
Cashier: "What? I can't hear you."
S: "Sorry, 20 piece McChicken."
Cashier: "What?"
S: "20 PIECE MCCHICKEN."
Cashier: "Uh, what do you want?"
S: "A TWEN-TY-PIECE-MC-CHICK-EN."
Cashier: ...
V: ...
S: ... "20 piece McNuggets please."

pwnd

Silly Game

2009-06-20T09:18:00.000-07:00

When I went home last week, Ronnie and I went to Joe DiMaggio's restaurant for DAT. We ended up playing this silly game you can only play with one of those long time friends that knows you better than you know yourself. (Btw, Ronnie's the gal in the background of my Blog pic aka Sharon). We took turns asking silly questions and turns out, I know Ronno pretty well. But this girl ended up with a score of I think 2 for 14! Ha! I'm just one big mystery aren't I??

Some of the questions, I can't remember them all. But no answers so I can remain...mysterious...oooh...:

What is something I am afraid of?
What is one of my pet peeves?
Who was my first crush?
What's my favorite beer? (Trick question)
What are any of my top 5 favorite foods?

At this point, Ronnie is fed up with questions only Helen could answer because we love the same things (i.e. cheese, coffee, house watching, cheese...) and she actually reads this blog. Hi Helen!! So, now I have to change my questions to "meaningful ones":

Why did I go to NY?
If I didn't take my offer with Google, which company would I be working for? (Correct!)
What was my favorite class at Cal? What was the most important class I took at Cal?

I gave her a choice between 3 classes for the 2 options and she still got both wrong!

My score was something like 10 for 14. Here are some questions Sharon asked me:

What's weird about my toes?

My answer: "You cut your toenails so short they often bleed."
Her answer: "No. I can crack my toes!" Uh, Ron that ain't some kind of superpower. My answer is better.

Which eye do I have a mole on? (She covers her face)

My answer: "...uhh...50-50 chance...THAT ONE!" Pointing to her right eye
Her answer: Uncovering her eyes and leaning toward me, "...I don't remember, which one is it??!"
"It IS that eye, I'm right, Booyah!"

What did want to major in before Bus/Econ?

My answer: "Architecture!"
Correct!

What's was my favorite class at Cal?

My answer: "One of those science classes...Physics"
"I never took physics."
"Yes you did, you kept trying to explain how a bicycle works and I kept yelling, 'Dude I don't care!!!'"
"OH YEAH! Ya, I really liked that class! But my favorite was Physiology."
"Close enough."

What's one of my pet peeves?

My answer: "Too easy! When people color in different directions. Excuse me, I have to go the bathroom..."
Her answer when I get back: "I got over the coloring thing a couple years ago. I hate when people go to the bathroom and leave me alone when we're at a restaurant."

New Song-of-the-Month

2009-06-18T19:22:00.001-07:00

Under Control by Parachute. Click the image for the imeem link -->

Much overdo post about NYC

2009-06-18T19:07:00.001-07:00

Written 2 weeks ago:

I've been putting this off because well, sometimes you just don't feel like analyzing. But here it is, here's what's been going on the last 2 months:

The set up was nothing short of perfect:

9 months in NY--just enough time to really experience it, but not so long that I would need to completely relocate
Between April and December, meaning the best of East Coast weather
Secure job
Subsidy for transportation, shipping costs, housing, and hey even partial gym membership, meaning I could afford to live, eat, and breathe Manhattan
Market low housing/rental prices
Market low flight prices
Market low retail prices and no tax on clothes and shoes under $120 :)
A handful of friends and family, one of which I've known for 9 years and was letting me crash indefinitely until I found a place to live (Side note: THANK YOU VERONICA!!!)
A handful of other associates in the office, even on my team
Joining a team at work that seemed awesome, busy, smart, great at what they do, friendly, and welcoming
Sublet my room to someone who was my age, needed it, would enjoy it, let me keep my furniture there, didn't care too much about rent/terms/length, got along with Minna, and works at Google
Heading to a city I've wanted to live in since I was 10 years old staring at Broadway St. from the Empire State Building at night

Needless to say I came to NY giddy, excited, optimistic...the best word really, is "ready". I was so ready to be here. Ready to live, eat, and breathe new air in a city that I always admired. Ready to get out of the 20-mile radius that I'd been in for 22 years. Ready to be challenged and confused. It's the same bug that shipped me to Cambridge in '03, DR in '05, and London in '06. It was almost a rite of passage for me to live on this coast for a while. Superficial, I know. Point is, I crave change and NYC has quite a lure.

Then the reality:

It took a month to finally settle on an apartment share, only to realize that I wasn't comfortable in the space
It took another week for me to find a better place, only to get shot down and locked into the aforementioned
It took another 3 weeks to fully unpack my suitcases, only to have another couple boxes of stuff somewhere in Jersey
The handful of friends and family aren't the "Yo, what are we doing today?"-kind, but more the "Hey, are you free to grab dinner next Tuesday? No? Ok, maybe next time."-kind
The other associates came here because they already have a life here
My team at work is definitely awesome, busy, smart, great at what they do, friendly, and welcoming. But I happened to join at a very odd time--when projects were too far along for me to join in and the organization decided to change about 14 times

So basically, in my home life, social life, and work life (which totals my entire life), I don't really have a place here. It's been 2 months and my feet are not planted. I don't know where I fit in this city.

Would it have been easier if that perfect set-up wasn't there? If I had shipped myself over, broke, not knowing another soul, forcing myself to "make it in the big city"; you know those stories. My story is much too safe to be one of those. Don't get me wrong, I'm so grateful for this opportunity and everything that made it happen. I just mean that when you play it safe, you forgo the challenge and reap a smaller reward.

How did I uproot myself in '03, '05, and '06. Heck, how did I start college, work, or any big stage of my life? Oh ya that's right, I always had a default network. "Fast friends", I call them. College-->dorm/fellowship friends. Study abroad-->program friends. Work-->Associate friends. Home-->HS friends. I realized that every new chapter of my life, I started with a big ol' group of other newbies too. Instant bond. Sure there were other newbies that came to NY in my program. But like I said, they came here because they already have a life here. It's like me going back home in January. Open to making new friends, but hey, I already have my core. I spent 22 years in a 20-mile radius, so I established a pretty grounded life in the Bay Area.

Now I'm in this amazing new place, but I feel like I'm experiencing it by myself.

When I was studying abroad, toward the end I wanted to travel more. When it came down to actually planning it, turns out those that wanted to go were broke as a joke and had to sit on their hands for the remaining few weeks (aaand, that is why I budget!!). I could have still gone by myself, but I didn't. Not that I think there's anything wrong traveling solo. But for me personally, traveling is more about the experience you have with those you are with than the things you see or do. For me, it's less meaningful gazing at the ceiling of the Sisteen Chapel without discussing the details with the person next to you, or climbing the stairs of the Eiffel Tower without someone to high five when you reach the top, or eating the best food of your life without offering it to the person across the table to try. So I stayed in London with those friends, discovered new splendors exactly where we were. I had a blast. (Unless of course, you are on a journey of self-discovery like Liz in Eat, Pray, Love. In that case, solo travel is the only way to go! Side note: Helen I bought it for $1 at an awesome bookstore!)

You know what would solve all this? A BOYFRIEND. It would take care of this problem don't you think? :) JUUST KIDDING! Let's not going to go there...I'm just joking. (Side note: When I was joking about this with Sharon, she straight up forbade me. No, not because it's silly to rely on a boy. She's afraid that if I find Prince Charming, I'll never come back! So I promised her I'll only aim for Prince Mediocre then, or Prince Just-for-a-few-months hahaha)

So by now I've been asked well over 100 times, "How's NY? How's it going?" and my answer is always the same: "It's going well, for the most part." And that's truthful. Despite feeling a little...lost, ungrounded, uprooted, lonely...I love this city. I love that I have the chance to live here for a while and be challenged. I love that I've figured out more about myself and my life now that I've removed myself from the Bay Area for longer than a couple months. And you know what, it's only been 2 months. And 2 weeks of those have been/will be spent back in SF! Finding a "home" takes time. Making quality friends, takes more time. I just hope that I find it before it's time to go.

Sham-WOW!

2009-06-18T18:28:00.000-07:00

Helen said I would elaborate on this on her last post, and I most certainly will!

At the Union Street Fair/Festival, we watched a demo for the ShamWow, and I must say...WOW! The guy (no, he didn't have the handless mike) did the demo where he pours a can of soda on the carpet:

1) Lay the ShamWow rest on top of the mess, it'll soak up 80%

2) Turn it over and it's soaks 90%

3) Wring it out and pound the ShamWow over the surface, and it EVEN gets the liquid underneath the carpet

Holy moly, they really work! I'm not kidding, they really do. I secretly wanted to buy some and purposely make messes just so I could use it. When I move into a house, I'm buying 19.

WOW!

Funny stuff

2009-06-03T10:40:00.001-07:00

Read the reviews for this awesome wolf shirt!

more fun

2009-05-08T17:31:00.000-07:00

http://www.overheardintheoffice.com/pages/mostpopular.html

Terence rapped for me :)

2009-04-17T08:07:00.001-07:00

Ayo her name is Sarah
She looks in the mirrah
Thinkin what will she see
A red phone booth lady
She aint around to call me a dork
Too busy livin it up in New York!!!

Nothing rhymes with your name =p

Change

2009-03-19T20:09:00.000-07:00

I studied abroad Fall of 06. For me, it was a blast. For my friend Monica, whom I met on the trip, it was not only a blast, it changed her life. Being in crazy town London for a mere 3 1/2 months took her out of her realm of comfort, dependence, and familiarity, and challenged her. Coming from a world where life was neatly planned, she had learned independence and ambition. She's now at Berkeley in grad school and I can see the ways this trip has impacted her. Basically, she grew. She learned. She changed.

Joanne is going to Thailand for work by herself. This girl has never been out of the country, let alone by herself! Right now, she depends on her small world--family, boyfriend, friends. She's a play-it-safe type of gal. This trip scares the bananas out of her. (Joanne, I love you, so I say this out of honest appreciation and to prove a point to my story.) But Thailand! Thailand will discover her identity. It will force her to be stronger than she thinks she can be, independent, bold, and risk-taking. Basically she'll grow. She'll learn. She'll change.

When I told Minna about Joanne's upcoming adventure, before I even said anything about the type of person she is, Minna said, "Oh man. This is awesome. Living in another country, it changes you." For Minna, studying abroad in France Spring 07, pushed her to the most extreme emotions she ever knew. This LA girl was forced to live in a new world while dealing with tears and heartache. Basically, she grew. Learned. Changed.

Then there's me. I grew up really quickly, very young, and feeling very aware of the world. I have spent the last 10 years striving to see more and do more because I was aware that I lived in a very small span of the universe. I'm aware, I observe, and I use that to shape my mentality, my life, my thoughts, beliefs, actions, and attitude.

What I'm trying to say is that since I was 12, I felt grown-up. Not to say that I haven't been challenged or that I haven't changed since then. But the foundation of who I am as a person, my identity, today was very set by the time I was 12. So for the past 10 years, I've also played it safe, played it smart.

So now New York. New York, this rite of passage of mine. Will I go through it and grow? Learn? Change?

Top 5 reactions to my NYC annoucement

2009-03-13T17:01:00.000-07:00

5. "Wtf. I need to work at google and rotate into Hawaii" -Clayton Au-yeung

4. "hey useless u are gonna miss my birthday i hate you!" -David Chau

3. "Congratulations ! It is a good news for you. Plan ahead before you leave here." -Dad

2. *in an angry, i-hate-you-for-leaving tone of voice* "I AM VERY HAPPY FOR YOU." -Sharon Lau

and the #1 reaction...

1. "feamoiemopaimvoemaowemrlmesf QHHAHHEIFo mmoae WHATTTTTTTTTT?!!!!!!!!!!" -Monica Altmaier

txt msgs

2009-03-11T22:19:00.000-07:00

Time to clean up my phone memory, so here are some of my memorable texts from the past few months:

Helen: "Sarah i miss you."
[my response was something like, "what? what's wrong with you? what's going on?"]
Helen: "Nothing! I can't just miss you?!"
----
Sharon: "O no i f****d up my pact. I made out with renie's salty friend"
----
[Trap is a game Minna and I play on our Android phone. The day before I got to level 17.]
Minna: "Wooooo I got to level 15 of trapt yea yea wooo"
Minna: "Yea I know. pretty successful day ya know I mean level 15 like woah"
[I then tell her about a new move I discovered call TURBO SPEED]
Minna: Oh my god life changing. Freakin life changing we can totally get to level 20 now"
----
Jeremy: "Lunch today?"
Jeremy: "Dinner tonight?"
Jeremy: "Dinner tomorrow?"
Jeremy: "Just checked my messages no google dinner tonight i guess"
----
Helen: "The best thing about going to school? Getting coffee bean! Whoo! How i use to go to class, i don't know..."
----
[Sharon works long hours at the hope that one of her deals will actually materialize. Apparently, I-banking tradition is to get plastered when your first deal is announced. Fantastic. I was sleeping.]
Sharon 12:15am: "My first deal got announced!!! Tepnel and genprobe!"
Sharon 12:42am: "Yah baby!"
Sharon 12:48am: "Yah baby!"
Sharon 2:03am "Yah baby. Uk time. Holler!"
----
Sharon: "Choi fly me to the moon"
[no context, really came outta nowhere]
----
Ryan: "May want to untag photos. Just tagged you in 50 from fresh/soph year lol."
----
Allan: "Good morning! Happy Valentines day! Love you! <3"
[Al is my very, very good platonic sweetheart boy [space] friend. He sent this to all us single gals.]
----
[Ronnie got asked out by a booooooooy so I texted Helen to let her know]
Helen: "Omgosh! Yes! Yes! Lol! I hope it works out for her =]"
----
Minna: "Hey I know you're busy buy just thought I should let you know I got a direct deposit from the govnt today for the refund and it was $3,200!!!!! Holy crap"
----
Sharon: "Hopefully see you 2nite, think adrian is coming. Can u give our friends a heads up to not ask questions about us? Pls!"
----
[I accidentally called some rando Albert in my phone thinking it was my other buddy Albert Hwang]
Albert Lin: "i don't have u in my phone book. who's this?"
----
Ryan: "Sigh LOL, took two girls I met at the clubs to church today..."
----
Terence: "Happy birthday young buck!!!"
----
[On our snowboarding trip...]
Minna: "I carved!!! Omg hallelujah break through"
----
Milan 8:27pm: "H"
Milan 8:28pm: "My bad about the random letter. Damn gphone."

My Dad is a Fob

2009-03-11T22:12:00.000-07:00

I love my parents! A reply to my email saying I'm going to NY:

Dear,

Congratulations !

It is a good news for you.

Plan ahead before you leave here.

Love you.

Daddy

NYC here I come!

2009-03-11T17:35:00.001-07:00

Ok, it's official, I'm going to NYC. Ok wow here we go. Ok gotta pack and move and figure this out. Here we go ooook.

I'm a panda.

2009-03-09T18:47:00.001-07:00

This weekend I went snowboarding! !!! Totally awesome dude man whattup! Perfect conditions, great company, and...fantastic weather. I keep a little tube of sunscreen in my ski jacket pocket because when the sun is shining on a beautiful white mountain, the light reflects some harsh rays. I make it a habit to put it on no matter how sunny it is that day. But Sunday, I forgot. That is why I took a picture of myself.

For those that don't ski/board, FYI: a beanie + goggles cover down to the top part of the nose and halfway down the cheeks. Look closely and you'll see that I look like a panda. Or possibly a wanted poster. Fantastic.

Quest Crew FTW!!!

2009-02-27T09:06:00.000-08:00

"Let me go into a slow mo right quick."
"That was hot!"
"That was cold!"
"That move that you just did right there..."
"ouhhhmmm" (Lil' Mama)
"Let's go into a slow mo"
"You guys are fillin it"
"I'm fillin it"
"Let's go into a slow mo"
"The athleticism"
"Strong women"
"Go! Go! Go!" (when they announce who's moving on)
"En-ta-tain-ahs"
"And now, you banner must fall...nowwalkitoutnowwalkitout"
"Bring it."
"You guys brung it."
"That was whack."

"ABDC. Check it." (Mario Lopez)

My Mom is a Fob

2009-02-24T15:04:00.000-08:00

I love my mom. My first generation, has never said "fabulous" in her life, mom. Email thread from my mother on my 22nd Birthday:

Subject: HAPPY BIRTHDAY

Dear My Daughter,

5 reasons why your birthday will be fabulous!!

5. You always know how to celebrate with style!

4. Three words : birthday shoe shopping!

3. You can indulge in those deliciaus birthday delights!!

2. Everywhere you go, you'll be the birthday girl!

And the Number One reason is

your birthday will be fabulous because YOU are!!

" HAPPY BIRTHDAY!! "

Love, Mom.

--
My reply message:
Hi Mom!

I'm laughing!!! Where did you get this? It doesn't sound like you. Was it from a birthday card??

Thanks Mommy, you're the best!

Sarah
--
Her reply to my reply:
You are right.
It was from my birthday card that my office co-work signed on last year.

I'm so glad that you were laughing about it.

Joanne is the worst Valentine ever

2009-02-20T20:52:00.001-08:00

An article written by Sarah Choi (February 17, 2009)

Joanne Huynh (in a committed relationship) asked Sarah Choi (single) to be her valentine out of pure pity. Choi initially refused, given that she is heterosexual and Huynh has a boyfriend. But Huynh forced Choi to be her second-string valentine. Choi spent 3 days coloring a beautiful picture, and presented it to Huynh on Valentine's day. Huynh, who did not bring anything for Choi, responded by criticizing Choi's color choice and never said "Thank you". Twenty minutes later, Choi discovered the picture on the floor soaked in an unidentified substance. Huynh, who crashed the "singles" party, left without the picture. The picture has since been left on Choi's dresser in complete mockery. FML

My Top 5 Foods of All Time

2009-02-11T22:41:00.000-08:00

I'm watching Top Chef and getting hungry! Makes me think of my favorite foods of all time. Here are the top 5 foods I could eat until I pass out. Literally, can't stay up vertical, must lay down, pass out. (These are not in order)

Mac & cheese with bacon...or SPAM
Ripe, sweet, fresh, cold grapefruit
Eggs Benedict
Ravioli...or lasagna...as long as it's Italian with ricotta cheese and lots of sauce!
Korean beef with sweet potatoes (dak-galbi) and Korean sticky rice, the way my mom makes it

Runner-ups:

French onion soup
Insalata Caprese
Crispix cereal
Dragon roll sushi
Stuffing
Pear Gorgonzola pizza from CPK (They took it off the menu, but it's back it's back!!!)

LO freaking L!

2009-02-02T23:39:00.000-08:00

mydadisafob.com
mymomisafob.com

here's a little sample:

Dad: Should I get Blueberry Boat?
Me: A what?
Dad: Blueberry Boat. That or iPod Touch Phone?
Me: iPhone?
Dad: iPod phone.
Brother: Do you mean a BlackBerry Bold?
Dad: Blueberry Bold, you know what I meant.
Brother: BLACKBerry Bold.
Dad: Blueberry Bold. I know it’s called that, don’t think your Daddy stupid.
Brother: But it really is-
Dad: Remember what I said last time about correct me on Blueteeth?
Me: It’s BlueTOOTH-
Dad: See, I know better than you two, I won’t get trick anymore.

Politics

2009-01-30T18:01:00.000-08:00

On Facebook, my political views are "Moderate". Technically, I had considered myself a conservative Democrat. But the more I think about it, the more I realize...I'm a hard-core Democrat!

THIS is why I am liberal at heart. Because if you leave it all up to capitalists and conservatives, you get douchebags that widen the gap. 1% hold 90%...something is wrong. Ya, ok so the bill is a little dramatic, but I love that it's making a statement. Did you know that the CEO of Costco makes only about $400,000 and pays their lowest-salaried employees over 2.5x the national minimum wage anyway? Hooray for accountability!

Props to H.Vo for providing this link. Actually, she blogged about it first and now I'm just piggybacking!

The world is falling apart, but not completely

2009-01-28T22:35:00.000-08:00

I am fine. My life is plugging along and stable enough. But I went to dinner and saw some Berkeley friends that asked "How are you?" Usually I say, "Things are great :)", but today I responded, "mehlaa I'm...ok.... :("

Recession. 70,000 jobs cut on Monday, bringing the grand total to... x00,000. Every industry is touched by this, and when Helen sent me this link, I couldn't help but think how the world is falling apart. Though it's my favorite, I know that it's just magazine (and let's be honest, how is a magazine going to survive when they lower their subscription rate to $10/year given inflation and increased postage!). domino was a very good, very successful magazine and to see it being shut down is a sign of the rest. How did a real estate bubble pop into a credit crisis that shocked the auto, retail, high tech, airline, home furnishing, you name it industries, that spiraled into the rest of the world's economic decline. I am hoping that this $819 billion stimulus package that Obama just got passed will revitalize this mess.

That's the macro-level, here's the micro:

One friend lost her perfect dream job that she was great at and is now filing unemployment papers and freaking out.
Another friend got mono while recovering from surgery and lost a fantastic career opportunity, and a quarter that delays graduation.
A friend is sick of her job and is in limbo wanting things to just end so she can feel like she's finally starting her life.
Friends are figuring out their lives and what to do moving forward. 23 is very young, but in this state of the nation (and the world), the opportunities are limited.
One friend suffered the loss of her grandmother and an unexpected breakup of a 4-year relationship in one blow.
Another friend just told me today that she's still looking for a job because the architecture firm she was going to join is in a hiring freeze.
Two friends among 100 that I worked with came to work one day and by 9:30am, had lost their job and gone home.
Since 2009 began, I have been reminding friends that sometimes, it's ok to not be ok.

Everyone is surviving. Everyone is plugging through. But friends, I am sharing in your pain. Though for me, life goes on as usual in this little Pac Heights/Google/IKEA bubble of mine, I see what is going on around me. I am sad because you are sad.

And you know what, though these times are miserable, they are not devastating. Life is not over, it is just more complicated. Things suck, but really, we will all be ok.

A quote from Allan Ma

2009-01-28T22:28:00.000-08:00

"Can't believe this is gonna be my third time seeing Death Cab. I've only seen Backstreet Boys twice! Somethings wrong here..."

AHHHH he's so funny!

mono and rearranging

2009-01-22T18:36:00.000-08:00

joanne has mono. i visited her on saturday. helen visited her today.

we both have sore throats.

i'm pretty sure we both just have a cold.

but joanne if we get mono i.will.kill.you. and don't you go all "ooh then i'll have company!" because i will kill you. i have rent to pay buddy.

also, my apt has decided to split rooms so we each have our own. i have the living room, which means shelling out an extra $106 a month and exceeding my planned budget by approximately 3%. but it also mean *breath deep* personal space :) re-deco this saturday.

Today was a bad day

2009-01-14T19:12:00.001-08:00

Email to Minna at 10:45AM: big news. big freaking bad news...

http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2009/01/changes-to-recruiting.html

I am thankful to have my job.

"No, you're always the yin."

2008-12-30T00:01:00.001-08:00

Helen, Sharon, and I had a dinner conversation that only friends of many years can have. After a bottle of wine and many updates, stories, and healthy debates about each of us (we took turns), we came to a realization. We are each the yin and the yang in our individual lives.
Clarification: Yin is Black, Yang is White. Ok so turns out you can't make tables in Blogger. Whatever, I used Paint. Here's how you read it:

X is the _____ for Y.
(i.e. Helen is the Yang for Sarah.)

Sometimes we are neither the yin or the yang, but the neutral curvy line in the middle. But turns out, according to those fools, I am always the yin. So what if I'm opinionated and expressive!! !! !

Something I realized is that we will always, in the end, do whatever the heck we want. Regardless of how much scolding the other two will do, we will still follow our own gut. But we need the debate, differences of opinions, pointing forks, muted yelling, and frustrated expressions. It's how we keep each other in check and make sure that even if we are going to make huge mistakes in our lives, at least we are prepared for the consequences. Thanks guys for not saying "I told you so" but instead cluing me into the realities of this world.

I have two remaining questions:
1) Were our lives always this interesting and ironic, or is this a product of being 20-somethings?
2) What do the dots represent in our little analogy? Maybe that we always seem to agree and disagree at the same time?

Urban Education

2008-12-17T18:58:00.000-08:00

I hate No Child Left Behind. Good in theory, horrible execution. Here's to hoping:

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/16/us/politics/16educ.html

my awesome manager

2008-12-16T23:22:00.000-08:00

did i ever tell you guys that i have an awesome manager? really, the best in town. she's so sweet and supportive. sharon met her and said, "she's a good manager, i can tell."

i found out today that she goes to church on sundays :). we were talking about how it's really important to marry a guy that shares the same beliefs. wow! so in sync.

she told me to check out this church called the journey. helen, and others, you wanna go? it's at the regency center at 11.

When I was your age...

2008-12-15T13:51:00.000-08:00

Oh the many things we'll be able to tell our children...

Walkman
CD Players
Boomboxes
Floppy Disks
Library Catalog files
Line-by-line printers with holes on the side
VCRs and VHS tapes
Landline phones

Song of the Month!

2008-12-14T19:07:00.001-08:00

new song is posted on the right sidebar. scrolll down a little.

Mad by Ne-yo

My friend Joyce Jung Kwon, an amazing jazz vocalist

2008-12-11T00:02:00.001-08:00

A blurb from her site:

There are 2 kinds of persimmons: the crisp 'dan-gam' that grows in hot weather and the squishy 'hong-si' that ripens in cooler regions. Joyce wondered why she wasn't ripening into a 'dan-gam' even while studying voice, jazz and music theory at the Los Angeles County High School for the Arts. But since relocating to Berkeley in the cooler bay area, she has realized she is not meant to be a 'dan-gam' and has started to ripen deliciously into a 'hong-si' of a musician, finding her own unique voice.

The List: Age 25

2008-12-09T22:32:00.000-08:00

*EDIT: I thought of one more...

Here it is. Helen inspired me. The 8 things I want to do before I'm 25-years-old (it would've been 10, but I couldn't think of any other big goals):

Visit Thailand
Learn Spanish
Do something, anything! in microfinance or non-profit
Fully and regularly donate 10% of my net income
Take the GMAT
Be a size 4 again
Commit to a church that I love
Live in a different city
*Go to the gyno. Not because I want to but because I should.

I have 3 years, 2 months, and 12 days.

Reinvent yourself

2008-12-09T19:00:00.000-08:00

an excerpt from my private blog:

yesterday i went to a info session for the Haas MBA program. MBA programs look for the typical stuff: work experience, gpa/test scores, interview, extracurriculars...wait, did they just say extracurriculars?? uhhh i thought once we started working, that's all we were supposed to do.

you know what i've been doing on the weekend? NOTHING. you know what i do when i get home? NOTHING. a couple weeks ago i realized i have NO hobbies. really. i hang out with friends, i write in this blog, i occasionally go to church (though i am trying to change that), i don't play sports or even exercise regularly, i go out at night, i go to holiday and birthday parties, i don't even travel enough to say i travel. i have been meaning to volunteer, but never got around to it. same with full circle fund. i like to do nothing. a lot. i like to sleep. a lot.

so here is the reality: people like me, with no hobbies and that like to lounge around in her sweatpants all day chatting with friends online or uploading the new britney spears album onto her phone, do NOT get into good MBA programs. and while that makes sense...crap!

this means i need to reinvent myself. i need to rekindle my passions and find a way to get involved while still working. burnout? maybe, but hey i'm young, so i can take it. but boy will i miss lounging in my sweatpants all weekend...maybe i'll start next year...

Drafts

2008-12-02T20:51:00.000-08:00

I just noticed a bunch of posts that are stored as draft. So with 57 minutes remaining on my laptop, time to publish those suckers.

Jen, I promise I will write about you someday :)

- addition -

So now that I've finished all of the draft posts, I realize that they save in the order they were first drafted, and don't publish as a new post. Here they are my small audience that may or may not care:

3/17/08 my testimony
3/27/08 Zephyr Cafe
4/9/08 Live consciously. Live responsibly. Live well.
4/10/08 On gambling
4/10/08 The Bucket Incident
8/14/08 treadmills with tv's
8/27/08 sometime in the fall ...oh i guess it was still summer...

next i will have to add all of my old xanga entries before xanga cancels my account!

Nonsense

2008-11-26T18:02:00.000-08:00

I have this picture album on my computer called "Those Fools", which made of pictures of you great friends of 8+ years. Special thanks to Helen and Katie for capturing some of the best moments in my life. So I'm perusing this album and I can't help but think, "What NONSENSE!" Check out my top 5 nonsensical pictures of you fools from this year (so far):

Hello? Can you hear me?

Rar! Happy Graduation Helen!

Party Foul! Take one spray.

Allan on Jen, not Jen on Allan.

The Cracker Game

Danielle Huffaker aka danihuff

2008-11-07T20:18:00.000-08:00

Dani is nothing conventional. She is the one that will start dancing with me in the hallway for no reason. She is hyper, excitable, debatable, intellectual, and deeply analytical. She has sexy hair. She is loyal. She is creative to no limit, yet often gets so overwhelmed by her own creativity that she has to take it all down. She is ambitious in spirit, yet safe in her emotions. I have never met anyone so in her own element and secure in who she is. She named her belly Natasha. She is weird and unique and lovable.

Dani was my freshmen year roommate turned aspiring business partner and forever friend.

Sharon Lau'D

2008-11-06T23:33:00.000-08:00

Sharon Lau is the one that confuses me. She is quirky, unreasonable, irrational, "pickable" and frustrating at times. Yet those are the exact things that make her endearing and loved by everyone around her. She is safe, yet doesn't have a clue what to do in this world. She always has a clear idea in her head, but can never explain it in words. She always does things her way, screws up, and learns 1,000 times more than I would in any situation. She is constantly learning and has learned to love herself in her own skin. She is the complete opposite of me, but we share the same love of the simplest and smallest things in this world. She vents to me and I vent to her. When I yell, she yells back. She challenges me in her comfort, and she lets me challenge her in my wild pursuits.

I believe that we are the most ourselves when we hang out with each other, and somehow find an odd balance that keeps us great friends.

Helen Vo is my hero

2008-11-06T23:19:00.000-08:00

Helen is the hopeless romantic that gets sick and frustrated of being a hopeless romantic. She's the most irrational, rational person I know. She can't do anything without a solid plan, but still ends up figuring out life as it comes, and at least 30 minutes late to everything. She's a social butterfly that loves home and often thanks God for friends. She struggles because what she wants and what she knows is good for her is often the opposite. She freaks me out sometimes because she thinks too much like me--our fundamentals, our beliefs, our likes, our thought processes, our taste in music, and both our hopelessness and hope of this world. She's the one that when I say, "You know what I mean?" actually does.

She is my second family, the other side of the glued hip, the other pea to my pod.

Hello friends

2008-11-06T23:06:00.000-08:00

As I was walking the 3 blocks home today, I thought about this Sex in the City episode (or maybe it was the movie) that I vaguely remember when Carrie describes all of her 3 friends. It made me remember this one conversation I had with Jared on our road trip down the 5 headed to our senior class cruise.

All them other fools had fallen asleep in the backseat, but Jared and I had some amazing conversations about our lives, our friends, our families, our pasts, presents, and futures. Somewhere around the Bathrooms (El Banos), or maybe it was the poop factory (Harris Ranch), he said, "Tell me about your roommates." So I proceeded to give him my Carrie-describing-Miranda-Samantha-and-Charlotte descriptions of Eunice-Dani-and-Minna.

Anyway, all this plus my last post inspired me to write about my friends. So each of the next several many blog posts will be about YOU MY FRIENDS.

(I am fully aware that there are oh maybe 3 people that read my blog haha! Jen, be patient, I'll get to you eventually! hahaha)

My little world

2008-11-06T22:44:00.001-08:00

I realized something last weekend: I live in the same place that I was born, grew up, went to college, and work in now. The same exact place where I want to raise my family and grow old. It is the biggest blessing in my life right now, though sometimes a bit of a set-back.

0.02% set-back partially because I always thought I'd be more "adventurous" and live somewhere in Belgium or South Africa or at least NYC for a while. I am in my 20s, pre-BF and pre-family. Shouldn't I be taking advantage of this? Also a set-back because I suck at keeping in touch with people and I don't know how to balance it all. I love you high school friends, I love that we are still so close. But freakin Terence wants to get plastered every weekend, what the heck. Then there are Berkeley kids that I miss so dearly and they are only a BART ride away, but I'm never sure how or who to see. I feel like I need an excuse to call them up, which is just not true. There are Berkeley grads that are spread throughout the Bay Area, but I took a BART ride to Fremont on Saturday and it's so long! Then there's me who needs a lot of "me time." Then there are nearby work friends that I want to hang out with, but never do. My family of course, with my lovely mother calling to see if she can pick me up on Saturday. So I wonder if maybe I lived in a place where I only had 2 friends, then I'd be better at balancing all of the branches in the tree that is my life.

But then I realize that I'm hella stupid for thinking that. I'd lose it all if I wasn't here. This is most certainly...

99.8% blessing. How the heck am I so lucky to have nearly all the people I love to death right near me (minus several key people that are off in some other non-SF land)? It's a blessing because I suck at keeping in touch and this allows me to meet up with people on the fly (even if I don't, it's nice knowing that I can). It's a blessing because I am never lonely. It's a blessing because I get a chance to solidify these friendships so that when I do go off to some far away land for a while, I can still never be lonely.

Let's change that to 100% blessing. Thank you my little world.

Classic Ron/Rah Convo

2008-10-23T21:22:00.000-07:00

9:08 PM Sharon: YOO nmmama

9:09 PM me: alo

whatitisyo?

Sharon: u drunk?

me: did you read helen's wall lately?

9:14 PM Sharon: yes!

lol

me: go read what i wrote

Sharon: u make it sound so bad

me: i felt bad

i know!

Sharon: u love hanging out with me

me: well i just called her sluttly mcsluterson on her WALL! for all to see!

oh no, not about you

i meant about me apologziing

Sharon: psh that doesnt make me feel better

huh?

9:15 PM me: what?

Sharon: hold on let me go read it

me: HUH?? what do i need to make you feel better about? what did i do??

9:16 PM Sharon: yah!

cuz you make it sound like its a chore to hang out with me!

APOLOGIXZE

NOW

me: ur stupid

Sharon: LOL

9:17 PM me: i'm so sorry dear friend you are such a pleasure and a joy to spend even just one waking breath of a moment in space and time with you my love, my dear, my joy, my all

where i come up with this stuff i dunno...

Sharon: LOL

ahaha

me: lol

Sharon: okay now apologize for being sarcastic!

9:18 PM stop typing and erasing fool

just type

9:19 PM DONT ERASE

i can feel the delete key under ur fingers itching

DONT DO IT

O NO

u IDID IT!

9:20 PM me: i am at my deepest most sincere regret that i have ever felt in the veins of my pain for the loss of gratefulness and genuine emotion of the comment upon which i bestowed a remark to your vulnerable presence that allows us to continue the bond that we share in this one single solitude of dear friendship that is immaculately polished from the length of time and space that was created in the moment of love and despair and hope of al things good and wonderful yet still so solemnly bitter and tearful among the clouds of apologies and false sarcasm i surrender my pride and leave my eternal request of forgiving love

didn't erase one single word

9:21 PM Sharon: LOL

what the hellllll

did u just make that up??

me: if you read it....and decipher

Sharon: lol

9:22 PM me: it says: i am sorry for being sarcastic and hurting your feelings when we have been friends for so long, please forgive me

for real. that's a translation

read it again, for real

Hello?

2008-10-14T20:09:00.001-07:00

It's official. Sharon and I are going to be PHONE BOOTHS for Halloween this year! Sharon will be an American phone booth. I will be a British one. We will attach a string and cups to connect us. We are going to Chinatown this weekend to find some human-sized cardboard boxes. Pictures to come. I'm so excited!

Small Changes

2008-10-07T22:48:00.000-07:00

A new picture with almost my whole face is up! The other one has officially replaced the VENICE BEACH BUTT of my imeem profile pic.

I finally got a haircut! I went into Salon Baobao because my trusty friend Yelp told me to go there. I sat in the chair and simply said, "My hair has been in a pony tail for a month. Something needs to be done." Funny thing is that at our 1st ever IVCCF2008 Community Dinner, two people said, "Wow, your hair is finally grown out!" Cutting it somehow makes it seem...longer. Go figure. Anyway, I love the haircut. I highly recommend the place ($55 pre-tip for a trim with a LOT of layers and far better maintenance than any lame-o supercuts crap), but only if you have a good amount of time. She spent an hour and a half! But she was fun, did a great job blow-drying my hair and gave me a hug at the end :)

My room is begging to be decorated. That's right, not RE-decorated, but De-corated. It's been over 2 months now, so it's about time. An IKEA trip and a possible upholstery project is planned for this weekend. Pictures to come of a before and after.

The Cracker Game

2008-10-07T22:44:00.000-07:00

This is a classic Allan-Sarah moment in time. This is called the Cracker Game. You throw a cracker at someone and they try to catch it with their teeth. Allan and I were on a team. Kudos to Helen for capturing the essence of our nonsense and to Jen for the awesome throw! Quite possibly my favorite picture of all time.

This picture might send me to an early grave, I'm laughing way too hard!

Save the Planet

2008-09-30T20:21:00.001-07:00

As I was crossing the street today, I walked past a cab. Nothing out of the blue for my swanky neighborhood. But wait, that's no ordinary yellow cab! It's a GREEN CAB! We can now take Prius taxicabs all over our beloved city. Whee! Dial 626-GREEN.

la musica

2008-09-28T18:45:00.000-07:00

i used to do a song-of-the-week on my blog, but i took it down after the "remodel." i think it's time to bring it back.

my musical taste is...not so tasteful. i'm a total top 40s gal. mainstream all the way! it's just more fun when other people know the songs too, you know? but on my little 1Gb of music storage I carry around I only really have one type of music. i'm not too sure what it's called, but the names i've seen it called are pop/pop rock/alternative/adult alternative/even indie pop, though i'm not too sure what that is. my musical style is to listen to one song, obsess over it by putting it on one-play-repeat for a month.

so now i give you this month's peacemongeroo's song-of-the-month, which will be on the right side of the blog. click the picture listen.

"Keep Breathing" by Ingrid Michaelson

gloves off

2008-09-25T09:21:00.000-07:00

hello friends. don't know when/if you will read this...

having heard both sides of the story, i personally feel that two things should happen, in this order:

1) conversations and apologies
2) time and space

both sides are unaware of why the other person is pissed off. you are both guessing, but you really don't understand.

one side doesn't understand why someone would say one thing but not act on it when the time comes; and why they have certain boundaries and seem to blame them for it.

the other side doesn't understand why the others can't seem to respect her boundaries; and why after telling them straight up that something hurts, it continues to happen.

friends, can we fix this? you all have had some serious misunderstandings and i think it's worth doing one of those talks like they do on the hills, but without the cheesy music. (a lauren/audrina talk, not a lauren/heidi reconciliation please.) gloves off, defenses down. just try to understand where the other is coming from. i think 10 years merits a conversation where no one is trying to defend themselves, only explain.

then take some time to chill. maybe it's a good thing that most people are back in school now.

don't be babies, saying stuff like, "i shouldn't call, she should call" or snarky remarks like, "whatever." be honest, but careful with your words. the thing about reconciliation isn't that you are all happy and skippy together again. the point is to recognize that things aren't ok, be friends of 10 years and talk about it.

just my opinion.

Breakfast

2008-09-23T09:57:00.001-07:00

you know what i'm eating for breakfast right now? nope, not my usual bagel with cream cheese and smoked salmon. jook with fried donut rings and carpet pork (i think the label said pork song).

wow, growing up with all you chinese kids really rubbed off on me. this is delicious. next i'll be drinking tong out of a jar.

um, ok that's a little too chinese for me.

WOWOWOWOWWOWWW

2008-09-15T23:30:00.000-07:00

Sharon Li is a junior that I met through HBSA and she's a sweetie pie. She sends me this message on Facebook today. What's sweeter than pie? That's her.
--
Hi Sarah,
This is Sharon :)

How are you doing?
How's google treating you?

I'm dropping this message to first and foremost say "Hi" to you!

Secondly, I started checking out InterVarsity this semester and I LOVE IT. I'm going to Marketplace and I heard that you led this small group last year (it would've been good if I knew this last semester and went to marketplace but I'm glad I didn't find out about marketplace too late).

Third, I had a wonderful summer internship experience doing Microfinance research. I started attending Microfinance Decal this semester and have had englightening conversations with Aaron and Emma. I will be joining them next semester to faciliate decal with them together until Spring 2010!

I feel like I'm following your footsteps haha :D
Are you visiting Berkeley any time? Personal visit or perhaps for Google?
Please drop me a message then.

I would love to see you again! (Since I didn't get the chance to see you this summer, thought you would be busy after graduation and vacation so I didn't want to bother you, but i would love to catch up with you at your convenience).

Have another great day at work!

Love,
Sharon
--
The things that started when I was there are still living on! CORRECTION from David: The things that God started when I was there are still living on!

Thank you Sharon for the much needed boost I needed to know that the things I cared about in college are not dead just because I have left. I don't mean I thought they would stop happening in Berkeley; I mean for myself. 4 months post-graduation, I have lost sight, touch, and momentum in seeking two passions: Jesus and social enterprise. This plus the Full Circle Fund meeting I attended last week, plus today having been a really good day (4 phone screens holler back!) is (hopefully) enough to get me going again. I told myself the "I'm adjusting to work life" excuse would only last one month. It's been over a month now. Gotta get going!

2008-09-08T20:44:00.001-07:00

MINI MEALS ARE BACK!!!

in the news

2008-08-28T20:34:00.000-07:00

hum, it's been a while since i really read the news. today i went through my colossel google reader pile up of news. here's what i learned:

Bill Gates is stepping down as CEO of Microsoft to do philanthropy with the Gates Foundation full-time. kudos Bill!
Inflation was expected at 1.7%. Actual is 3.3% to date
Apple is expected to miss it's quarter earnings. But then again, 43% of college undergrads that plan to buy a computer this fall will buy a Mac. I support that haha. My MacBook Pro is super.
Sri Lanka is growing as a country with strong ethical clothing manufacturing
the SEC is changing accounting standards from GAAP to international standards. good stuff. it's about time. metric system next right?
Obama can spend 10 minutes just saying, "Thank you."

ok...so it's very dark right now and this shuttle is taking a very different route than usual. hum...

sometime in the fall

2008-08-27T17:54:00.000-07:00

today i went home early because it was 85 degrees in san francisco. at 6pm. WAOW.

i sat in the park overlooking my beautiful city thinking about life.

2008-08-27T17:52:00.000-07:00

hello berkeley. did you have a good first day of school?

jen's diet

2008-08-25T22:40:00.000-07:00

you may not know my friend jen. that's unfortunate. because this post is only funny if you know her:

10:37:17 PM
im hungry
fuck
im always hungry now
my mom wont let me eat rice
i get 2 bites a day
like seriuosly
im not even exaggerating
and then evreything else is fish and veggies
i just want a juicy cheeseburger
mmmm

Bird Tragedy

2008-08-18T20:26:00.001-07:00

Today another bird died from a case of clean windows.

I was walking along when it looked as if someone threw a shoe out of a window. I gaze upward at the morning sky, and there, tufts of gray feathers floating softly in the air. I walk over and see a little gray bird, twisted in a heap upon the green grass, twitching, its eye in a hollow stare. I turn to Minna. I say, "What do we do?" She says, "File a ticket." I say, "I don't know what to categorize that under. Do I put it as 'Urgent' priority?" (Ok, I didn't really say that, but it would've been funny if I did).

In our stupor, we watched the little gray bird. Slowly, it stops twitching. "There's nothing we can do," says Minna. We walk away. "There's nothing we can do."

treadmills with tv's

2008-08-14T07:30:00.000-07:00

in a chat with richard he asked, "how's real life?"
i said, "real life working at google isn't really real life."

i feel so spoiled. example: treadmills with tv's on each one. tv's with CABLE. this is not a new thing, but i've never ran on one before. running a couple miles watching friends is np. i can never go back.

but a lot of feeling spoiled is actually cuz i have a really awesome manager and a supportive team. marianne is really taking care of me, making sure i know what's going on, walking me through every step, answering questions, etc. i learned that the #1 reason why people leave their job is because of their manager. their manager might not even be rude or demanding; they might just be disorganized or have poor leadership skills. not so for me, so looks like i'm staying put :)

copy-paste from helen the dj melon's blog

2008-08-07T07:41:00.000-07:00

Does this happen? Do people really become closer to their high school friends as they graduate college?? I've met so many people who've hated high school, or don't have a group to hang out with when they go home, or hang out with different groups.....!??! Really? That boggles my mind! I just can't believe how far we've come. I can't believe we're right here, right now. That we still call each other to hang out everyday to do absolutely nothing. Come on, we used to have the boys sit on one side of the table and girls on the other. We used to drive to a haunted hospital! But now we actually say things like..."I'm proud of you and who you've become." What the eff!? Who are we????

Anyway, I love my friends so effin much. Ahh!! I love that the girls can still have legit sleepovers (the kind where you eat double-stuffed oreos and watch chick flicks) even though we're 22 years old. I love that the guys are protective over the girls and will seriously kick asses to make sure of that. I love that we're so comfortable now...lying in each other's arms, holding hands, "Sure, you can sleepover" nights. =]...unlike our awkward middle school years. We seriously spend too much time with each other. I can't imagine my life without them. I can't get enough. I feel like I'm in love..but with my friends. When I think about us, I get all the butterflies in my stomach and I'm just so excited for the next time we hang out! It's...weird. I know.

My first day in the "real world"

2008-08-04T20:14:00.000-07:00

today was my first day at Google. ohhh my was it long. but fun. they hooked us up with sweet laptops (macbook PRO baby!), giant sled-sized backpacks, and food of course.

i went very light on the meals today. i am going to be very conscious about how much i put on my plate. never get seconds. one dessert and one coffee per day max. as long i remember that the food will be just as good tomorrow, i should be fine.

this week will feel like more like class than anything. today was definitely flashback to business and PACS classes--everyone on their laptops, checking email and chatting, spacing out on the speakers, and the speakers fully knowing what's going on.

hmm so much for "transition" to work!

one more reason i love nikki toyama

2008-07-16T16:23:00.000-07:00

Urbana 06: December 30, Morning Session

Financial Sacrifice
Nikki Toyama

In college, I was very confused. One week, I was pre-med, the next, business, studio art design. I went through every major at Stanford, looking for some direction. There was Jesus, of course, He gives us direction. But was there something more specific that I should know?

Until I figure out what I’m supposed to do, I’ll follow God to the best of my abilites, and I’ll have fun. I graduated in mechanical engineering. I took a job with an engineering firm. I did well – really well. I was on a team of engineers and we helped develop a brand new medical device. It was a pioneer in the treatment of heart disease. We sold it to a company that wanted to take it to market. It was the highest price paid for a patent in its field.

As one of three engineers, I was entitled to a percentage of the profits – a royalty. At that time, I was considering a job change – moving into full-time ministry with InterVarsity Christian Fellowship. The deal came in just one month after I had made the decision to make that move. I was ecstatic. It felt like a confirmation – God’s way of setting me up.

My royalty was estimated at between one and three million dollars. It was all coming together perfectly. That’s when the perfect plan began to unravel. I told my company about my plan to leave. They told me, “Nikki, if you go, you won’t receive the royalty.” We argued. There was confusion – who said what when to whom.

“Stay one more year: the product goes to market, secure your royalty. Leave now and the money is gone.”

I agonized over it. I rationalized. I came up with some really good, really convincing reasons why I should stay: support tons of missionaries, start good charities. But when I was honest, here was the only reason that I would stay in my job: to get the money. To choose to stay for money has another word: idolatry.

I left my job to go into ministry as planned. I left without a promise of royalty, and the royalty never came. To tell you the truth, when I said no, I fully expected to get the royalty. I imagined God saying, “Good job, Nikki! You passed the test. You were faithful in little, I will give you even more.” I felt entitled to God’s blessing, entitled to His favor, because I was trying so hard to be faithful to Him. God owed me.

That summer, after my first year on InterVarsity staff, I went on a missions trip to Cairo, Nairobi and Bangkok with the Global Urban Trek. There, I discovered something chilling, something haunting, and it’s never let me go.

In Cairo, Christians in the garbage village tattoo a cross on their wrist when they are young. It demonstrates their commitment to Christ. If they were to cut out that cross, they would slit their wrist. They would rather die than deny Jesus as their Lord. This is no small claim in a Muslim country.

The next week, we left for Bangkok, and the image of those crosses was still haunting me. In the red light district, I met a woman. We talked of family and of hopes and of dreams. When I left, she grabbed my arm with both hands and she thanked me for our conversation. It was just a mundane conversation. As I rounded the corner to return home, my guard began to lower, and I sat on that wet Bangkok pavement and wept. I cried for the women in Bangkok and for the children in the garbage village. As I began to weep, God began to etch His heart on my wrist: the faces of the urban poor.

I could no longer deny them than deny my own existence. My life will forever be tied up with that of the urban poor. What does that look like? I haven’t a clue. God is slowly bringing parts of it into focus.

I have to wonder if I had three million dollars sitting in a bank account back home in the states, would I have been able to hear that call? Or would I have been defensive when hearing about economic injustice in this world, knowing that I – one small woman in the U.S. – held a disproportionate amount of wealth?

I used to think that God withheld His blessing because I did not get the royalty. Instead, He withheld it to give me something far more priceless: an invitation to be a part of His work in the world. I almost missed God’s invitation to be a part of His redemptive work in this world, to be good news and to announce good news to people whose economic situations or whose history make it hard for them to believe that the good news is actually good.

Following Jesus is costly, but not following Jesus is far more costly. If we free Him from the obligation of our expectations, we open ourselves up to God’s beautiful invitation beyond. I felt entitled to whatever money I could make to fulfill my economic potential. But behind the illusion of entitlement lies an invitation from God. What does God owe me? Nothing. But He has given me everything in Jesus Christ.

(From http://www.urbana.org/u2003.session.segment.cfm?segment=74&session=7&ItemTypeID=1)

peacemongeroo

Sarah Chois rule the world

Share to Care (SF)

Beware of flash sales

What's a Motto with you?

Songs of the Month, er, Moment

BFF

Oops

Home & Away

Eating Dinner

Joey went rogue

Recipe for a GREAT day

Parking in SF

go america!

It lives on!

An email from my Dad for my birthday

Boring

Furikake goes with everything

SF to NY to LA to SF

LET'S GO GI-ANTS!

camping

puzzles are frustrating

"They're not even TRYING!"

That's my boss('s boss)!

"It changed my life."

Mondays

How much would you pay for this meal?

Girl Advice

Excerpts from an article by Tim Keller

New Song-of-the-Month

HIMYM

Another day, another year

Work Work Work

Grow Up!

Google Voice

Dialogue

Fwd:

"You and I" by Ingrid Michaelson

Enough for Now

Quote Burrito End Quote

Best of the Bay

I'm a Yelper!

It's really over

McDonald's

Silly Game

New Song-of-the-Month

Much overdo post about NYC

Sham-WOW!

Funny stuff

more fun

Terence rapped for me :)

Ayo her name is SarahShe looks in the mirrahThinkin what will she seeA red phone booth ladyShe aint around to call me a dorkToo busy livin it up in New York!!!Nothing rhymes with your name =p

Change

Top 5 reactions to my NYC annoucement

txt msgs

My Dad is a Fob

NYC here I come!

I'm a panda.

Quest Crew FTW!!!

My Mom is a Fob

Joanne is the worst Valentine ever

My Top 5 Foods of All Time

LO freaking L!

Politics

The world is falling apart, but not completely

A quote from Allan Ma

mono and rearranging

Today was a bad day

"No, you're always the yin."

Urban Education

my awesome manager

When I was your age...

Song of the Month!

My friend Joyce Jung Kwon, an amazing jazz vocalist

The List: Age 25

Reinvent yourself

Drafts

Nonsense

Danielle Huffaker aka danihuff

Sharon Lau'D

Ayo her name is Sarah
She looks in the mirrah
Thinkin what will she see
A red phone booth lady
She aint around to call me a dork
Too busy livin it up in New York!!!

Nothing rhymes with your name =p